Learning Something New
by Mr. Koiwai
Summary: Short stories about Yostuba and her Daddy.
1. Is it a good fortune?

Placing his fork gingerly onto the plate scattered with broken-up shrimp-tails, Mr. Koiwai addresses his daughter sitting next to him.

"Yotsuba, what gave you the idea to leave on your bike and go to the noodle shop?"

She turns her head, looking at him with several long udon noodles stringing from her mouth. "Ummm..." she says, trying to find an excuse. She slurps the noodles into her mouth.

Her Daddy sighs _(is she even listening to me?), _adjusting his elbow onto the table, his knuckles holding up his chin. "You know its not safe- how many times do I have to tell you not to go off on your own?"

"But I can when I ask permission first!" objected the girl.

He widens his eyes in mild surprise. "But did you?"

"N-no..." the child looks down at her bowl. She stares at the warm, brown soup inside, her eyes growing large with shame. Tears shimmer, waiting to spill out.

He watches her quietly for a moment before saying her name. "Yotsuba."

She looks at him miserbly.

He lowers his hand into his lap. "Thankyou for not lying to me." he says softly. He gives her a rewarding grin.

"I'm...not in trouble?" She brings a hand across her dripping nose, snorting.

"Nope." He removes his hand from his lap and brings his fist over her hands. "Open them." he says lightly.

Yotsuba opens them obediantly, her mouth open in excitement. "Oooh, what is it? Is it ice-cream?"

Her Daddy drops a wrapped fortune cookie into her palms.

"Huh?" Her face turns sour, her mouth tensing up in disapointment. She holds the wrapped treat in the air by one end. At last, she says, "What the hell _is_ this?"

"You've never eaten a fortune cookie...?" He takes another from a bowl on the table and says, "Watch what I'm doing."

The little girl leans over, placing both hands on the table with the cookie inbetween them, like Daddy is doing. When he pulls the wrapper in opposite diections, she follows suit, and a hissy-pop sounds as the cookie is released from its vacuum-pack prison.

"I did it!" she cries. She swings a head to her Daddy, who begins pulling the cookie apart in the middle. A slip of paper falls out. "What's that?" she asks, pointing. "A tape-worm?"

"Your fortune." he replies.

"Like a future-telling?"

"Uhh, yeah. Something like that." He picks it up and reads it outloud: " 'Life is short; cherish your time with the ones you love.' " Seeing his confused, smiling adopted daughter, he leans over and kisses her on the head. "I cherish the time I've spent with you." he says sweetly.

Yotsuba giggles, and digs out her cookie from the popped wrapper. "Me next!" she says loudly.

_(I didn't think we were taking turns..) _Mr. Koiwai picks up his own cookie, then takes a bite out of it. As he chews, Yostuba is shattering hers against the table, crumbs shooting across the place.

"Hey, be more courteous." says her Daddy. "Someone's going to have to clean that up later."

The five year old takes out her fortune from the mess of crumbs, and opens her mouth to read it. But she shuts it, her eyes widening in horror.

"What's wrong?" asks Mr. Koiwai, amused.

"N-nothing..." she tries again, reading: " 'Later, Daddy will take me- I mean Yostuba, to the Zoo.' "

"Hmm...Does it _really_ say that?"

"Uh-huh!" protests the girl quickly, sweat forming on her face. "I'm not making this up, no way!"

He offers his hand out to her. "Let me see it."

Her hand trembling, she hands over the slip of paper.

" 'Your best friend may be an enemy.' " Blinking, he looks at Yotsuba, whose expression is much like one you'd have after seeing a kitten get run over by a car right before your eyes.

_(Why does she look so upset? Am I her best friend...?)_ Finally, getting out of the chair, he says, "Come on."

He takes out some money and sets it at the table as payment. Yotsuba hops onto the floor and stares up at her Daddy with fearful questioning silence. He walks out the door and waits outside by her bike. She goes out hesitantly and stands a few feet away, her hands working nervously in front of her.

"Do I really seem like an enemy, Yotsuba? Is that how you see me?"

"N-no... but the cookie..."

"-is wrong." He interupts. "Fortune cookies tell- what, what do they tell?"

"Fortunes..."

"And are fortunes good or bad?"

"Good.."

"And your fortune was bad, correct?"

Yotsuba looks up, eyes shining. "You're right!"

He smiles down assuringly at her.

She smiles and looks ahead, across the street at nothing. He joins her, and they watch people drive in their cars, on their bikes, and shuffle into different shops.

"That was a bad cookie." Yotsuba decides at last, eyes narrowing.

"Mhm."

Mr. Koiwai reaches down and takes her hand.

End


	2. Waiting for food part 1

It is just another cool night for the Koiwai-family. While, outside, the world is shutting down into sleep, one girl, safe inside the house, is winding back up for more.

"Rawr, rawr, rawr!" she yells, knocking one building-block against another. "Aah, don't eat me!" she shrieks in terror. She throws a block in the air and wacks it with another, shouting, "Stop complaining, or I'll give you something to complain about!"

Mr. Koiwai appears in the doorway, rubbing his neck. "What are you doing in here?" he asks.

"Animals!" says Yotsuba shortly, her face tight with annoyance. She picks up the one she hit, and holds it up for Daddy to see. "The goat was being a pain and needed to be punished-" she grabs another block and puts them together in her hand. "-so the lion decided to kill it and all the other animals were happy."

"Why were all the other animals happy...?" asks Mr. Koiwai, slightly concerned. He enters the room and squats down, watching the girl.

"Becaaaaause..." says Yotsuba, gathering more blocks, piling against her shirt. She turns to Daddy, saying, "Goat is a sacrifice, and if it doesnt die then none of the flowers will grow, and all the wheat and grain will spoil! So if the goat doesnt just shut up and die, then everyone else will die from starvation! It's really really serious!"

"Woow," he sits down properly and looks over the sticker-covered blocks. "That sure was a nice gift Jumbo bought you."

"Yeah..." she looks at the block in her hand, then drops it, spinning around and jumping into her Daddy's lap.

"Oowrf!" he grunts on impact.

"You're done with work?" gasps the girl, smiling.

"Oh...yeah, I am."

"Good-" she sits down in his lap, facing him. "-then make me some dinner!"

"Dinner?" he looks at his watch in confusion. "But it's not even 5 yet..."

"I'm hungry! Feed me!" she demands loudly in his face. "Now!"

"Okay, okay," he stands up, and the girl topples backwards into the floor, banging her head into the blocks. "Ow! You idiot!" she shouts.

But he ignores her, wandering into the kitchen. "Hmm...what should we have for dinner?"

"Oh!" Yotsuba stands up and runs into the kitchen after him. Standing at his heels, she raises a hand up.

Blinking, he turns and looks down at her. "Yes?" he asks.

"Can I make a suggestion?"

"Sure."

"Curry!"

"No, we've had curry recently, at the balloon festible, remember?"

She drops her hands, disapointment clouding her face.

Mr. Koiwai places his hands on his sides, thinking. "How do you feel..." he scans over the kitchen, then says, "...about having pizza tonight?"

"Pizza?" asks Yotsuba.

"Pizza?" repeates her Daddy. _(You dont know about a lot of things, do you?)_

"Pizza?" questions Yotsuba.

"Basically, pizza is flat bread shaped into a circle-"

"Like pancakes are supposed to be!" says Yotsuba, amazed at this discovery.

"Right. The shape is the same," Mr. Koiwai walks over to the cabinets and starts taking out things: a packet of yeast, measuring cup, bag of flour... Saying, "but what you put on it is different."

"Do you put strawberries on pizza?"

"No. You dont put strawberries on pizza." He takes out a cookbook and flips through it. "You put tomato sauce on it, and cheese, and whatever toppings you want. Like chicken, seaweed, mushrooms- that kind of thing."

"Ooooh..." she looks around quickly, then runs over to the pantry. She returns with a box of milk candy. "Can we put this on as a topping?"

"Go put that back." he tells her. As she runs off, he takes out the sugar bowl and the measuring spoons. He arranges all of the ingrediants and tools along the counter in order of when they will be used. He slides the automatic mixer out so that his daughter can reach.

He smiles. _(I'm actually excited about this.) _"Are you ready, Yotsuba?" he calls over his shoulder.

She scoots the mini-stool over and climbs ontop, saying, "Aye aye, Captain!"

"What...?" mutters Mr. Koiwai.

"Can I crack the eggs?" asks the girl.

"There are no eggs in a pizza."

"Oh..."

Skimming over a certain page in the cookbook, her Daddy says, "Okay, first we need to measure out one-and-a-half cups of flour. And then-" he scoots the mixing bowl an inch closer, "-pour it in here."

"Got it!" she lifts the bag of flour and aims it at the measuring cup.

Placing his hands on his hips, Mr. Koiwai watches with proud eyes as his daughter stops pouring directly at the 1 1/2 mark.

"Good job!" praises her Daddy. "You have very precise measuring skills."

"Yeah- I've had practice making cake with Fuuka and her colleague!" replies the child.

"Colleague, huh...?"

With a smirk, the girl adds, "I'm a natural."

"Let me see you do the rest, then." When she looks at him in surprise, he explains. "Measure out the ingrediants as I read them to you, and put them in the bowl."

She smiles. "It shall be with my honor!"

"...that's not what you say..." He picks up the book and reads it off as the girl pours the flour in the bowl. "Okay. We need a half-a-cup of warm water." He looks at her, about to explain that its okay to use the measuring cup again, even with flour in it.

But Yotsuba already figured that out. With a grin, she hops off of the stool and runs over to the sink. She flips the faucet up and out towards the hot-water, then turns the water on low. She fills the cup up to the correct mark before shutting off the water and waddling to the counter.

The girl steps up to the counter and sets the cup down with a hefty sigh. "That was tough work!" she exclaims.

"Really..?" says Mr. Koiwai_. (Maybe I should enroll us in an exercising class...) _"Do you want me to take over-"

"Dont give up on me, man!" shouts Yotsuba. "I'm stronger than I appear!" With that, she pours the water into the bowl, then slames the glass measuring cup onto the counter. "What's next!"

"Yeast!" shouts her Daddy.

The packet is ripped open and swiftly dumped in. "Next?"

"2 teaspoons of sugar!"

Nearly hysterical, Yotsuba grabs the correct measuring spoon and dunks it into the sugar bowl. With a flick of the wrist, she shakes the sugar into the flour-mixture. "Now what?"

"One tablespoon of salt!"

The little girl flips through the connected measuring-spoons until she finds the right one, then she divides it and shoves it into the salt container. Once the salt is in the bowl, she turns on her heels, keeping balance on the stool, and shouts, "Now what?"

Throwing up his hands dramatically, he shouts, "Turn on the mixer!"

Nodding once, she leans over and flicks the switch. With a low _mmrrrr mmmrrrrr mmmrrrr_ sound, the metal whisk turns and flips the flour-mix around, blending it in a slow, growiling motion.

Standing at her side, her Daddy says, "And that's how you make pizza dough."

"Wha-!" Yotsuba tilts her head to one side to peer into his face. "Pizza snow?"

"No, pizza _dough_. Where did you get snow from...?"

She turns back to the mixer. "How long is this going to take?"

"Well, once its mixed I'm going to set it aside and let it rise...And that'll take about an hour. Or less..."

"A whole _hour_? But I'm hungry _noooooow_..."

"Well, then we have to make the sauce, and the actual pizza..." He trails off, wondering if the choice he made for dinner was a bad one. He asks her, "What do you want to do until it's done?"

Still pouting, the girl folds her arms across her chest and says, "I'm hungry..."

Sighing, Mr. Koiwai walks out of the room.

"Wait!" calls Yotsuba, leaping off the stool and chasing him out into the living room. He stops and turns around. "What if I go visit the Ayase's until the dough is risen?"

"It's," he looks at the watch, "5:15 already."

"So?"

"Well, they're probably in bed. Sleeping."

She looks down sadly. "Oh...yeah..." She sighs.


	3. Waiting for food part 2

Obversing her, her Daddy comes up with an idea. "Hey- did you hear that?"

Perking up, Yotsuba cups a hand to one ear, listening, her face serious. "I didn't hear anything... What's it sound like?"

"It sounded..." Mr. Koiwai paces the living room, a hand to his chin. His daughter trails behind curiously. "...like a little girl..."

"Huh? Ena, maybe?"

"No..." Mr. Koiwai stops, pretending to frown in concentration.

"What was the little girl doing? Was she crying? Pooping?"

"...Laughing."

"A little girl laughing? Who? Where?"

He looks down at her. "Right below me."

Tilting her head, she says, "Wha...?"

He then tackles her to the ground, tickling her sides. He holds her against his chest, both on their sides, her kicking and flailing out her arms in effort to get free. His fingers lightly tap away at her ribcage like a piano.

"Aaaah! Hehehee, quit it, Daddy! Hahahaaha!"

He rolls with her until they're pinned against the side of the couch, and he continues to taunt her sides and her armpits.

"Aaahahahaahaa!" she kicks and screams, tears shimmering in her eyes. "S-stop! Hehahaaa!"

"I cant stop!" he shrieks. "My fingers are moving on their own!"

"Then- hehehe!- cut them off- ahahahaa!"

Sitting up abruptly, her in his lap, he looks at her in alarm. "Cut them off? That would really hurt..."

Yotsuba smacks him across the face. "You lied to me!" she snaps. "You can too control your fingers!"

"Sorry..." he mumbles. _(Should I really be apologizing?)_ He looks away towards the kitchen, then back into the living room. He sees Yotsuba looking up at the ceiling. "What're you looking at...?" he tilts his head up.

Crawling along the ceiling is a little red dot.

No... A ladybug.

Yotsuba cawls off of her Daddy's lap, then stands up, her hands balling into fists. "I'm gunna catch that ladybug." she announces.

"How?" asks her Daddy.

Her eyes narrow. "Just watch me."

Folding his legs up, Mr. Koiwai leand against the couch to watch.

Yotsuba runs out of the room, saying, "Make sure it doesnt leave!"

He glances up at the bug, then stands up. He walks into the kitchen to check on the dough. "...almost ready." he tells the bowl sheepishly.

"Daaaaaaady!" whines the girl. "You let it get away!"

"Hm?" he walks back into the room and sees his daughter holding onto her cicada net, scowling at the ceiling.

He smiles suddenly.

She looks up, feeling his gaze. She gaps at him, insulted. "Why are you smiling?" she demands.

"Be very still, Yotsuba." he tells her, still smiling.

She stiffens, unmoving.

"Now slowly raise your left hand- no, your other left...Dont you know that already...?"

The child gasps in awe, dropping her net. On her left hand, the ladybug makes its way up her knuckles, and settles onto her index finger. "Awesome!" she shrieks happily.

"I think it likes you." he says, resting a hand on his side.

"This is so cool! I have a ladybug!" her face falls, and she looks at her Daddy shyly. "What should I do with her...?"

"She lives outside. Why not take her out front and place her on a flower?"

"Okay!"

"Put some shoes on first, okay?"

"Okay!" She runs to the door, then stops, plopping herself onto the floor. She takes her shoes from against the wall and slips them on, using only her right hand. Once finished, she stands up and turns on the porch light. "Oooh, it's dark outside..." she says. She turns the ladybug in her hand, watching it change directions. "Ready to go back where you belong?" she asks the insect.

Mr. Koiwai hears the door open, then close. He yawns, then rubs his face. "I guess I'll get started on that sauce..." he goes into the kitchen and finds a pot, and takes the can of crushed tomatoes out of the pantry.

Meanwhile, Yotsuba walks down the path to the gate, looking either way for some flowers. She spots some across the street and quickly opens the gate, guided by the porch light.

Then, she notices something. Another light is on. She looks down the street and sees the Asage's lights are on. "They aren't sleeping yet!" she says excitedly. "I can show them my ladybug!" Giggling, she runs to their front gate and presses the "switch that makes people come out." When no one does come out, she presses it two more times.

Then, the door opens. Silowheted by the indoor lighting, Asagi Ayase calls out, saying, "Yostuba...? Is that you?" she starts down to the gate. "Are you all right?"

"I got a ladybug," explains Yotsuba. "and I was going to set it free, but I saw that you weren't sleeping so I wanted to show you guys!"

"Ooh, I see..." Asagi leans over the gate, smiling at the little girl. "Well Mom and Ena are already in bed, and Fuuka is studying, so they cant come. But I'll be happy to tell them about it in the morning!"

"Okay..." Yotsuba sticks her hand out towards the oldest girl, saying, "I found her on the ceiling in the living room."

"Really? That's cool. How did you get her down?" _(Not with violence, I hope...)_

"She flew to me all by herself!"

Asagi laughs. "Wow, she msut really like you."

"That's what Daddy' said!"

"Oh," she looks up and over, towards the Koiwai house. "Does your Daddy know you're out here?"

"He thinks I'm just letting the ladybug go." admits the girl.

"I see. Well, thankyou for showing me your-"

Just then, the ladybug takes flight, vanishing in the darkening sky.

Eyes wide, the older girl stares at Yotsuba, wondering if she's about to start crying.

But she just smiles and waves at the sky. "Bye-bye ladybug!"

Asagi joins her, waving at nothing. "Bye-bye! Have a safe trip!"

Turning to Asagi, the child says, "I have to get going now too. Bye!" then runs off down the sidewalk, towards her own home.

"Bye!" she calls back. _(Such a strange girl...)_

Yotsuba sprints until she reaches the gate, then she flings it open and rushes head-on towards the door.She bangs open the door, then kicks it shut, saying, "I'm baaaaaack!"

"You sure took your time." says Mr. Koiwai, standing in the hallway.

"Mhm!" Yotsuba walks around him, then a scent catches her attention. "What did you do to make the house smell so good?"

"I made the pizza sauce while you were away." He follows her into the kitchen. On the table is a baking sheet covered in dough; Yotsuba points at it, looking at her Daddy. "The dough was ready, so I went ahead and spread it out over the baking sheet." he explains.

"So..." she begins wringing her hands together like a dishrag. "I dont get to help you make dinner anymore...?"

"That's not true. We still have to put on the toppings, remember? I just took care of the boring parts."

"Making sauce and spreading dough is boring?" asks the girl, her spirits lifting.

"Yep." he walks over to the table and says, "But before we can start with the toppings, I need you to put the sauce on for me."

"Is that the stuff that smells good?"

"...Yes."

"I'll do it!"

With her Daddy encouring her from behind, Yotsuba spreads out the red sauce, then once the dough is covered they begin decorating the pizza with everything they can find: mushrooms, sausage, onions, garlic, chicken, olives, left-over udon noodles, and fish. Once completed, Mr. Koiwai shoves the pizza in the oven and starts a timer.

"There!" he says proudly. "We did it."

"We did it." agrees his daughter with a strict nod. She looks up at him. "Now what?"

The man visably ages. "..We wait 45 minutes." he says darkly.

"Long time." the girl says, just as cold.

"Yeah." agrees her Daddy.

They glare at the oven as if it were a new enemy; one they must endure together in order to come out victorious. In order to eat...

In union, they sigh.

Someone's stomach growls loudly.

Both with looks of embarresement, they stare at eachother, frozen.

"Was that you, Daddy?" asks the girl at lengh.

"No, it was not!"

Another stomach growls, much louder.

Again, they sigh. Defeated.

They look at the oven once more. Two minutes pass.

"...dessert before our meal?" suggests Mr. Koiwai.

Yotsuba gasps, jerking her head up in attention. "For real? That's an option!"

"Only for tonight."

"Got it." she smiles.

A moment later, they are seated at the table, chewing on ice-cream sandwhiches.

"These are the best kind of sandwhiches!" states Yotsuba.

Handing her a napkin, he tells her to wipe her face. "Yeah?" he takes another bite from his. "Why's that?"

"Because they're kiddie size!"

_ (She's right...and I'm still hungry.)_ He trys to take another bite, but sees nothing but a sticky wrapper. Smiling slightly, he asks, "Want another?"

By the time they are done with their second round ice-cream, the pizza is ready. But they both forget all about it until the fire-alarm starts to wail.

That night, they both laugh theirselves to sleep, talking about how black the pizza had become.

End


End file.
